Mother Hubbard: Pan Am passion brings big names

LAS CRUCES — Barbara Hubbard reminisced last week about some of her first and favorite bookings at the Pan American Center, which is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year.

"Let's see, Ike and Tina Turner were among the first. It's hard to say who the biggest stars were in those early days. I was just real fortunate to bag Bob Hope. And we've had U2, Bon Jovi, John Mellencamp, Dolly Parton, Olivia Newton-John, Charley Pride, Rod Stewart, Chuck Mangione, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Red Skelton, John Denver, the Bolshoi Ballet, Bill Cosby, Tony Bennett, Gloria Estefan, James Taylor, Janet Jackson, Ray Charles, the Judds, R.E.M., Mac Davis, Elton John, The Carpenters, Mac Davis, Brooks and Dunn, Bob Dylan, Harry Connick, Jr., Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Kenny Rogers ..." said Hubbard, who once noted it would be easier to compile a list of major recording acts that had not played the Pan American Center than it would be to name all those who had.

She would know. As special events director for Pan Am Center from 1968 to 1998, she reigned as queen of the high desert entertainment frontier.

Garth Brooks is king of ticket sales for a two-day gig, May 30 and 31 in 1996, but Elton John still holds the record for a one-day single entertainment event on Feb. 12, 2000.

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"When it comes to money, George Strait ranks the highest for one performance, but ticket prices were higher," Welch said. Strait's Feb. 1, 2007, concert was the first major concert after the Pan Am's 2006 renovation, and sold 12,399 tickets totaling $724,780.50.

In addition to sports events and eclectic gatherings ranging from presidential campaign stops to commencement ceremonies for NMSU and area high schools, the Pan Am has been a mecca for a wide variety of entertainment events, from the 1996 Miss Teen USA Pageant and the annual Las Cruces International Mariachi Conference workshops, mariachi masses and talent Spectaculars showcasing student singers, dancers and musicians and also top names in the genre, including Mariachi Cobre, Linda Ronstadt and Pedro Fernandez.

"The ones I love the most would have to include Hope and some of the old acts that kids wouldn't recognize, like the Chambers Brothers and Ernest Tubb," she said.

Some superstars have become good friends over the years, like country greats George Strait and Vince Gill, "who absolutely makes me feel good every time we talk. He and Amy (Grant) are regular people, just like you and me," Hubbard said.

It was Hope who first dubbed her "Mother Hubbard," a title she has continued to earn by assuming eclectic responsibilities above and beyond the call of usual duties for major venue executives, top talent bookers and scholarship fund advocates.

"I remember when the Doobie Brothers were here, bringing their underwear home and washing it because there were no washing machines available, and U2 borrowing my pickup truck to make a film. I got to play gin rummy with John Wayne. George Burns and I discussed our paper routes. We discovered we'd both delivered papers when we were kids," said Hubbard.

But you don't have to be a superstar to have benefited from Mother Hubbard's legendary generosity. She has helped students launch careers in everything from performance to promotion and venue management and has even offered to baby-sit for small kids of fans who came from Juárez to see their favorite stars.

And Hubbard still has her eye on some prime "gets."

"I love some of the new favorites. I'd like to get Keith Urban and I think Brad Paisley is one of the best musicians around," said Hubbard, who continues to work with a variety of nonprofit groups and causes and has no plans to retire from her post as executive director of American Collegiate Talent Showcase, Inc.

"It's a nonprofit that works on getting scholarships and helps kids get on stage or who want to work in production or behind the scenes, anybody who wants to learn the business. I just love the university town and I love what I do. I've had a wonderful life," Hubbard said.